Experts discuss future of water in Ventura County

Plotting the future of water in Ventura County is vital to the area's economic health, and events such as a symposium Thursday in Oxnard keep water agencies and bureaus up to date on new information, one expert said.

"It's very important to communicate with each other. The key is collaboration. We need to get together and talk. That's how we're going to find solutions," said Kelle Pistone, managing director of the Association of Water Agencies of Ventura County.

Representatives from the county's water agencies weighed in on topics such as environmental regulations, groundwater regulation and prices at the symposium at the Courtyard Marriott Oxnard.

Speaker Jeffrey Mount outlined what he sees as the biggest challenges facing California. Mount, who wrote "Managing California's Water: From Conflict to Reconciliation," introduced himself as "Dr. Doom."

"You can sum up water in California as floods, drought and lawsuits," said Mount, a professor emeritus of geology at UC Davis and partner at a strategic planning firm.

California has one of the most highly engineered water systems in the world, with water shipped hundreds of miles to serve residents all over the state, Mount said, and the earlier work to create the massive system has devolved into an era of conflict.

He said that efforts to return to a "native" ecosystem are fruitless.

"There is no such thing as a native ecosystem," he said. "We all need to work on restructuring because we are failing to realize that humans are integrated into the system."

Mount used Matilija Dam near Ojai as an example. He said that such "useless" structures need to be torn down yet more dams need to be moved and built. He called for expanding the water supply through conservation and groundwater banking.

Mount said water should be treated as a public commodity and that one of the biggest problems with water management is failure to coordinate. He said neither the state nor federal government is providing much guidance on the issue.

"The federal government has shifted from doers to regulators," he said, adding that the state has a "groundwater overdraft" of millions of acre-feet per year. Mount said institutional reforms must be made in water management for changes to be effective.

After his speech, a panel of six water experts discussed the California Environmental Quality Act, prices, environmental concerns, farming and agriculture.

Panel moderator Joe Gibson, a partner with Meridian Consultants in Westlake Village, said the group needed to tackle small decisions that when combined could have unintended disastrous results.

"In Ventura County there are many small agencies each pursuing their interests, such as public health and endangered species," Gibson said. "In a perfect world they would balance out everyone's best interest, but they have led to some nightmare scenarios."

The panel agreed that water prices will have to be raised and called on water purveyors to explain to customers the need for such increases.

"It's going to cost more, but think of the value," said panel member Alf Brandt, a water and policy expert for the state Assembly.

The panel agreed that upcoming water shortages will be man-made and natural and that a water board should control groundwater.

"I don't think you can tightly regular surface water, but groundwater is the Wild West," said panel member Sarah Owsowitz, an expert on the California Environmental Quality Act.

Pistone said the conference helps keep Ventura County water agencies at the forefront of the complex water issues in California.

"Overall our county is known for being proactive. We come to the table with solutions at the regional boards. We're not reactive; we're proactive," she said. "By bringing in people from the outside we can learn their lessons."

For information about the Association of Water Agencies of Ventura County, call 644-0922 or visit http://awavc.org.